Scott Brison touts new parental leave benefit during P.E.I. visit

MP Scott Brison, president of the Treasury Board of Canada, was in Charlottetown Monday to promote the new parental leave benefit announced in the latest federal budget.

The new benefit offers an extra five weeks paid leave to the second parent in a two-parent household, when taken at the same time as the other parent. That goes up to eight weeks for parents using the extended, 18-month parental leave.

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"This is a use it or lose it incentive on purpose, because we really want to encourage and incent the second parent in two-parent families to share equally in the work of raising their children," Brisonsaid.

Eliminating biases

Brisonspoke at Chances Family Centre in Charlottetown. He said while parenting responsibilities are now shared more equally than in the past, he hopes the new parental leave benefit will contribute to reducing the traditional gender divide.

And if attitudes around parenting expectations continue to shift, he said that would help in other ways, too.

The gap between men and women in Canada today, including the gender wage gap, is something we can't defend. Scott Brison

"In the workplace there are current biases sometimes against [shared parental work]," Brison said. "We believe that this will help, over a period of time, eliminate some of those biases."

He also said with more men taking advantage of parental leave, and societal expectations change, eventually that could help eliminate any discrimination women could face during hiring processes.

A chance for parents and babies to bond

Verna Bruce, co-chair of the Chances board of directors, is happy to see efforts encourage both parents to take time off with their young children. She said spending time with children is especially beneficial during their earliest stages.

"Those first few months are when the brain is developing at its fastest rate. It's also, we know, when children are learning where safety is, they're learning vocabulary, they're learning language.Those first few months the development is just incredible."

Andrew Cudmore, who attended the event at Chances, said the new leave benefit will be helpful for families like his. He said having the chance to spend time with his infant son at this stage in his life has helped them to bond.

"I know that when he gets upset, which happens from time to time he's quite happy whether it's my wife or whether it's I that comforts him," Cudmore said.

Addressing gender gap

Brisonsaid the new leave benefit is just one of the ways the federal government is committed to reducing the gender wage through its budget.

The government is also aiming to address pay equity and more support for businesses owned by women.

"The gap between men and women in Canada today, including the gender wage gap, is something we can't defend any more. It's something we have a moral responsibility to address."

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